By Josh Stein · Founder, Art of NOMA · writing on the emerging-art market since 2023
The art world uses a lot of words that nobody explains, and the effect — whether intended or not — is that people who do not already know them feel they should not ask. This is the list we would want a first-time buyer to have.
Terms are grouped by where you will actually meet them: on a label, in a conversation with a gallery, on an invoice, and later on when you own the work. If you only read one section, read the paperwork one — that is where the money is.
Words on the label
The small card beside a work carries more information than most people read. Here is how to decode it.
- Medium — what the work is made of and on. "Oil on canvas" and "oil on linen" are different; linen is finer and more stable, and costs more.
- Mixed media — more than one material. Honest but uninformative; ask what the materials actually are, because it affects how the work ages.
- Works on paper — anything made on paper: drawings, prints, watercolours, gouache. Generally cheaper than paintings by the same artist, and more vulnerable to light and humidity.
- Diptych / triptych — a work in two or three panels intended to hang together. Buying one panel alone is almost always a mistake.
- Verso / recto — the back and the front. Signatures, dates and inscriptions on the verso are common and matter.
- Unique — one of one, not editioned.
- Untitled — a deliberate choice by the artist, not an oversight. Often followed by a bracketed descriptor.
- Circa (c.) — approximate date, used when the exact year is not documented.
- Dimensions — conventionally height × width, and for sculpture height × width × depth. Check whether the figure is the work alone or the work framed.
- Site-specific — made for one location and not really transferable.
How the market is structured
Almost every confusing conversation about art prices comes from not knowing which market you are standing in.
- Primary market — the first time a work is sold, normally by the gallery that represents the artist. The price is set by the gallery in consultation with the artist, and the proceeds are split between them.
- Secondary market — every subsequent sale: auction houses, dealers, private sales. The artist usually receives nothing from these, which surprises most people.
- Representation — a formal, ongoing relationship in which a gallery commits to showing, promoting and selling an artist's work. Different from a gallery simply having a piece available.
- Exclusive vs. non-exclusive — whether the gallery is the only one handling that artist, or one of several. Both are normal; it is a fair question to ask.
- Consignment — the gallery holds and sells work it does not own, taking a percentage. Most gallery inventory works this way.
- Emerging / mid-career / established — informal career-stage labels. "Emerging" has no fixed definition and is applied to artists of any age at an early point in their exhibition history.
- Blue-chip — artists whose market is considered stable and proven. Borrowed from finance, and carrying the same implication of low risk and low upside.
- Provenance — the documented ownership history of a work, from the artist onward. It matters for authenticity, for value and for legal title. See why provenance matters when you collect art.
- Catalogue raisonné — the scholarly, comprehensive catalogue of everything an artist made. Inclusion in one is close to definitive proof of authenticity, and mostly exists for major or historical artists.
Prints, editions and what the numbers mean
This is where the most money is lost by people who did not ask one more question.
- Edition — a fixed number of identical works produced from the same source. The label reads e.g. 4/25: the fourth of twenty-five.
- Edition size — the second number, and the one that matters. Five is a different proposition from five hundred.
- AP / EA — artist's proof (épreuve d'artiste). Prints outside the numbered edition, traditionally kept by the artist. Two or three is normal. If an edition of ten carries five APs, it is really an edition of fifteen — ask.
- HC — hors commerce, "outside of trade": proofs not intended for sale, used for exhibition or reference.
- PP — printer's proof, retained by the person who made the print.
- Open edition — unlimited. A poster. There is nothing wrong with owning one; it is not a collectable in the market sense.
- Giclée — a French-derived marketing term for a high-quality inkjet print. It sounds technical and means nothing about quality. Ask what printer, what inks, what paper.
- Archival / pigment print — printed with pigment-based inks on acid-free paper, stable for decades. This is a meaningful description; "giclée" is not.
- Lithograph, screenprint, etching, woodcut — genuine hand-printing processes, each with a distinct surface. Very different from a digital reproduction of a painting, and worth learning to recognise.
- Reproduction — a photograph of an artwork, printed. Not an original print, whatever the listing says.
Our fuller treatment is in prints vs. editions vs. originals.
On the invoice and the paperwork
Read these before you pay, not after.
- Certificate of authenticity (COA) — a document stating the work is what it claims to be. Its value depends entirely on the signatory: the artist, their estate or their representing gallery means something; a certificate printed by a reseller means nothing. See what a certificate of authenticity really means.
- Condition report — a written description of the work's physical state: losses, restorations, craquelure, foxing, warping. Standard for secondary-market and older works, and always reasonable to request.
- Craquelure — the fine network of cracks in aged paint. Often normal, occasionally a problem.
- Foxing — the brown spotting on old paper caused by damp and age.
- Restoration / conservation — conservation stabilises a work; restoration alters its appearance to approach its original state. Both should be disclosed and both affect value.
- Title transfer — the moment legal ownership passes. Usually on full payment; confirm it in writing if you are paying in instalments.
- Droit de suite / artist's resale right — in some jurisdictions, a royalty paid to the artist when their work is resold. Applies in much of Europe and the UK; not in the United States or Mexico.
- Import duty and VAT — charged when a work crosses a border, paid by the buyer, and frequently not included in the price you were quoted. See buying art from abroad.
- Crating — a purpose-built wooden case for shipping. Expensive, and for anything large or fragile it is not optional.
What do galleries mean by placing a work?
Galleries use a specific vocabulary about selling that can sound evasive until you know what it means.
- Placing a work — selling it, but with the implication that the gallery chose the buyer. Galleries genuinely do care where work ends up, because a collection with institutional standing helps an artist's career.
- On hold / on reserve — the gallery is keeping it for someone for a defined period, typically 24 to 48 hours. You can ask to be second in line.
- Waitlist — for artists with more demand than supply. Real, though how it is ordered is at the gallery's discretion and rarely purely chronological.
- Available on request — the price is not published. Ask; it is not a trap and no one minds.
- Price on application (POA) — the same thing in more formal clothing.
- Viewing room — an online presentation of works, usually with prices, sometimes time-limited.
- Studio visit — seeing an artist's workspace. The most informative hour available to a collector, and part of what a gallery does in an emerging artist's career.
- Commission — asking an artist to make something specific. See how to commission a custom artwork.
- Deaccession — when an institution formally removes a work from its collection, usually to sell it. Contentious in the museum world.
Terms you meet once you own it
- Stretcher / stretcher bars — the wooden frame the canvas is stretched over. A loose canvas can be re-stretched; it is routine.
- Float mount — framing that leaves the edges of the work visible, so it appears to float. Common for works on paper with deckled edges.
- Deckle edge — the soft, irregular edge of handmade paper. A feature, not damage.
- UV glazing — glass or acrylic that filters ultraviolet light. Essential for anything on paper, and for photographs. Light damage is cumulative and irreversible.
- Acid-free / archival — materials that will not yellow or degrade the work over time. Non-negotiable for mounting and framing.
- Foxing, bloom, bloom-through — surface changes caused by humidity. A conservator, not a cloth.
- Appraisal — a formal written valuation, needed for insurance and estates. Not the same as what a gallery says it is worth.
- Scheduled item — an artwork listed individually on a home insurance policy. Most standard policies cap art coverage far below what collectors assume. See how to insure the original art in your home.
- Fair market value vs. replacement value — what it would sell for, versus what it would cost to replace. Insurance uses the second; it is higher.
If a term you have met is not here, it is worth asking whoever used it. In our experience, anyone who will not explain their own vocabulary plainly is telling you something useful about whether to buy from them.
Verified 25 August 2026. Definitions reflect standard usage in the primary art market. Resale-right and tax treatment vary by jurisdiction — confirm locally before relying on either.
Art of NOMA is an official Artsy partner gallery based in Mexico City, representing around forty contemporary artists and more than 250 original works across painting, photography, print and sculpture.
Frequently asked questions
What does provenance mean in art?
Provenance is the documented ownership history of an artwork, traced from the artist onward. It matters for three reasons: it supports authenticity, it establishes clear legal title, and a strong provenance — a notable former owner or exhibition history — adds value.
What is the difference between the primary and secondary art market?
The primary market is the first sale of a work, normally through the gallery representing the artist, with proceeds split between gallery and artist. The secondary market is every sale after that — auctions, dealers, private sales — and in most jurisdictions the artist receives nothing from those.
What does AP mean on a print?
AP means artist's proof, from the French épreuve d'artiste, sometimes marked EA. These are prints outside the numbered edition, traditionally retained by the artist, and two or three is normal. They matter because an edition of ten with five artist's proofs is really an edition of fifteen, so it is always worth asking how many exist.
Is a giclée print valuable?
Giclée is a marketing term for a high-quality inkjet print and says nothing about value on its own. What matters is whether it is an archival pigment print on acid-free paper, whether it is part of a limited edition, and whether the artist authorised and signed it. A giclée reproduction of an existing painting is not an original print.
What is a condition report and should I ask for one?
A condition report is a written description of a work's physical state, noting damage, restoration, craquelure, foxing or warping. It is standard practice for secondary-market and older works, and requesting one is entirely normal. For a new work bought from the representing gallery it is less common, but asking whether there is anything you should know is always reasonable.
Does a certificate of authenticity guarantee a work is genuine?
Only to the extent that the person who signed it is in a position to know. A certificate from the artist, their estate or their representing gallery carries real weight. One produced by a reseller or a third party with no direct relationship to the artist carries none, regardless of how official it looks.
What does it mean when a gallery says a work is on hold?
The gallery is reserving it for a potential buyer for a defined period, commonly 24 to 48 hours. If the hold lapses the work becomes available again, and it is entirely acceptable to ask to be placed second in line.
Sources
- Tate — Art Terms — institutional reference for technique and movement terminology
- MoMA — Art Terms — institutional reference for materials and process
- UK Government — Artist's Resale Right — statutory basis for droit de suite in the UK
Ready to use any of this? Art of NOMA represents around forty artists across Mexico and internationally, and every work ships with its documentation. Start with the roster or the paintings.